- Introduction
- Advantages
- Performance
- How it works
- Enhanced Design
- Control Systems
- Applications

Introduction

The Gas-Liquid Cylindrical Cyclone (GLCC) compact separator replaces bulky conventional vessel type separators and can be suited for many different oilfield applications.

The GLCC was patented by Chevron in 1992, and is available to the Oil & Gas Industry through members of the Tulsa University Separation Technology Projects (TUSTP), a Joint Industry Project involving thirteen companies from the petroleum and related industry. Presently, over 700 GLCC’s have been successfully installed in the field.

msi, as member of TUSTP, has the license and expertise to design the GLCC and the overall multiphase separation system, as well as, other compact separation equipment developed by TUSTP.

Advantages

• Simple, no moving parts
• Compact, Low weight
• Easy to Install and Operate
• Requires Little Maintenance
• Reduced capital costs (inexpensive separator, installation, relief system)
• Increased Efficiency, Reliability, and Safety
• Increased Operational Envelope
• Performance can be predicted through available mechanistic models
• Reduced Purge Time and Motion Sensitivity
• Can handle high gas-liquid flow rates
• Pipe rating

Performance

The GLCC, can be designed for various levels of expected performance when used for two-phase gas-liquid bulk separation,. Typical performance levels range from 0.5–2.0 gallons of liquid per MMscf in the gas leg and 0–5% gas in the liquid leg.

How it works

The GLCC utilizes centrifugal and gravitational forces to separate the gas and liquid phases.
Each of the components play a key role in the separation process:

• Inclined Inlet pipe: promotes stratification and pre-separation; diameter, inclination angle, and length are key parameters
• Tangential inlet slot: introduces and accelerates fluids tangentially into the GLCC to promote separation by centrifugal force; geometry and size are the key parameters
• Upper section: liquid droplets pushed on the inner wall forms liquid film and drained by gravity; gas collected and exit from the top
• Lower section: vortex formed below the inlet, gas bubbles move to center and liquids move to the inner wall, separated
• Liquid & Gas legs: flow meters, control valves installed and provide pressure balance for liquid level regulation
• Recombined point: balance hydrostatic head for passive level control
  
  

Enhanced Design

• Single Inlet: Avoids re-entrainment
• Dual Inlet: Pre-separation, Handles slug flow, Allows slower controls
• Slug Damper: Handles slug flow, Increases Performance.
  

Control Systems

• Self Regulation
• Passive Control
• Conventional Control
• Adaptive & Predictive Control
• Intelligent Control
  

Applications

The areas and oilfield applications where GLCC technology is typically employed includes:

• Gas-Liquid production stream separation
• Multiphase metering loop with single-phase meters
• Pre-separator for de-bottlenecking of vessel-type conventional separators
• Reduce slugging (using advanced control systems)
• Solve slashing problems in FPSO vessel separators
• Raw gas lift injection
• Inlet or wellhead test separator
• Flash separators before oil or water treaters
• High pressure GLCC for Wet-Gas
• After first stage compressor